Track and Field. I INTRODUCTION Track and Field, a group of running, hurdling, jumping, and throwing events held between individuals or teams at indoor and outdoor meets. The running and hurdling competitions make up the track events, while the jumping and throwing contests comprise the field events. In many countries the sport as a whole is called athletics. Running races are the most prominent track-and-field events; they range in length from the indoor 50-meter dash to the outdoor marathon, which is 42 km, 195 m (26 mi, 385 yd) long. Track-and-field events are easy to stage, which is one reason for the sport's worldwide popularity. The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) governs the sport internationally and boasts more than 200 member nations. In the United States and Canada, track and field is one of the most popular high school sports. Each year more than 950,000 high school students participate in competitions. Modern track and field traces its origin to the Olympic Games of ancient Greece, which were staged more than 2,500 years ago. While the rules of 20th-century competition are quite different from those of ancient times, the spirit of the sport remains true to its early Greek roots. The modern Olympic motto Citius, Altius, Fortius (faster, higher, stronger) best captures track-and-field competition. Each event determines who can run the fastest, who can jump the highest or the longest, or who can throw the farthest. The metric system is used to measure track and field's many distances and heights. (The use by the United States and Britain of the English system of inches, feet, yards, and miles ended only in 1976.) One meter is about 3 ft 3 in, or about 39 inches. II TRACK-AND-FIELD VENUES Most outdoor track-and-field meets occur in stadiums or areas with some spectator seating. The track, which is surfaced with an all-weather material such as asphalt or a rubberized compound, encircles a grassy area called the infield, where field events take place. A typical outdoor track is a 400-m (437-yd) oval. Most tracks have eight lanes, and all races go in a counterclockwise direction. Running events often occur simultaneously with one or more field events. Most indoor meets occur in arenas. The tracks are usually 200 m (218 yd) in length, and because of this, indoor track and field has a different set of records from outdoor track. Because they are shorter, indoor tracks also have banked turns that allow runners to reach top speed without running off the track. III ATHLETES AND TEAMS Track and field is essentially an individual sport. Still, in many contexts, especially high school and college, teams exist. There is no fixed number of members on track teams, and many athletes participate in more than one event. In collegiate and high school championships, athletes score points for their schools, and in most cases, a team champion is crowned. Outside of organized school competitions, in most open and elite invitationals, no team scores are kept; while athletes may belong to separate clubs, team dynamics have little bearing on the competition. At the Olympics and other international championships, athletes compete for their nations. A single nation, however, does not win the Olympics, because there is no official team scoring system. Only the track-and-field World Cup, an international meet held every four years, uses official team scoring for individual nations. Most track-and-field athletes wear a uniform in the color of their team, club, or nation. Typical dress consists of a singlet or tank top, and light shorts designed for maximum comfort and performance. The most important piece of equipment is a pair of spiked track shoes. Most competitors also wear a number pinned to the uniform. This helps officials, judges, and fans identify specific athletes during competition. IV OFFICIALS In top-level track and field, a team of impartial officials supervises events. Officials assign athletes to compete in the proper order or proper lane. They also start races, ensure that no illegal conduct occurs, and time and judge the finish. In the field events, officials measure each athlete's efforts and watch closely for fouls. In youth and high school contests, one or two officials, helped by various volunteers, supervise the events. The officials report to a referee or the meet director, who takes responsibility for the overall organization of the competition. V TIMING AND MEASUREMENTS Timing and measurements are crucial to track and field. During some competitions only a few hundredths of a second or a few centimeters separate the first- and second-place finishers. Events can be timed with basic methods such as a stopwatch, or more advanced timing systems that incorporate videotape and photo finishes. Usually, the higher the level of competition, the more sophisticated the timing systems. At the lowest levels of competition, such as youth and high school meets, officials start and time events with a starting pistol and handheld stopwatches. One official fires the gun into the air as the starting signal, and other officials or volunteers time each competitor with independent stopwatches. Some competitions at this level use multilane timers. A multilane timer consists of a single electronic system that times all eight runners simultaneously. One official starts the system when the starting pistol is fired. Eight other officials are each assigned to a specific lane and hold a button that is attached to the main unit by a cord. When the runner in their assigned lane crosses the finish line, the lane official presses the button and the runner's time is recorded. Because of human error, times taken with stopwatches and multilane timers are typically up to a quarter of a second faster than more advanced timing systems. As a result, hand-timed races are not considered accurate enough to measure national, Olympic, or world records in the shorter track events. In order to set a new national, Olympic, or world record in events shorter than the 400-meter dash, an automatic timing system must be used. This highly accurate system features an electronic starting pistol and a computerized timing device that produces an image of the finish. Most state-of-the-art timing systems use a camera that feeds a stream of digital photographs into a computer. An operator then uses special software to read the times. Older systems use a videotape or conventional photography to record the finish. Wind is another factor in timing elite events. In the sprints, shorter hurdles races, long jump, and triple jump, any wind that might aid a competitor's performance is measured. If the wind exceeds 2.0 m (6 ft 6 in) per second, then the mark cannot be considered for record purposes. VI RUNNING EVENTS Running events are competitions that test athletes' quickness, speed, and endurance. Athletes win running races by completing the distance or course in the least amount of time. A Sprints The shortest running events, called sprints or dashes, are the premier events at a track-and-field meet. The outdoor sprints consist of the 100-meter, 200-meter, and 400-meter events. Sprints contested at indoor meets include the 50-meter, 60-meter, 200-meter, and 400-meter events. Past champions include Jesse Owens, Wilma Rudolph, Evelyn Ashford, Carl Lewis, Florence Griffith Joyner, and Michael Johnson of the United States; Harold Abrahams and Linford Christie of the United Kingdom; and Donovan Bailey of Canada. In running the sprints, the athlete crouches at the starting line, leaps into full stride when the official fires the starter's pistol, and races to the finish line at top speed. Sprinters gain traction and power in the start by placing their feet against metal or plastic starting blocks located behind the starting line. The athletes who are fastest coming out of the starting blocks have the advantage. The chief characteristics of an efficient sprinting style are high knee lift, free-swinging arm movements, and a forward lean of about 25 degrees. Endurance is a major factor in the 400-meter race, because the athlete must maintain a sprint for such a long distance. It is rare for a runner to have both the pure speed and the stamina to compete in both the 100-meter and 400-meter events. B Middle Distances Races ranging from 600 meters to 3,000 meters are known as middle-distance events. The most popular distances are the 800-meter, 1,500-meter, and 3,000-meter runs. The mile run is also a popular event. It is the only nonmetric distance still officially recognized. Outstanding middle-distance performers over the years have included Paavo Nurmi of Finland; Roger Bannister of Britain, who was the first to break the 4-minute barrier in the mile; Jim Ryun of the United States; Sebastian Coe of the United Kingdom; and Noureddine Morceli of Algeria. Middle-distance runners use a combination of sprint speed and endurance. They must stay in contention but also regulate their speed carefully to avoid tiring too quickly. Some middle-distance runners change speed several times during a race, while others maintain an even pace throughout. Nurmi, who dominated track and field in the 1920s, carried a stopwatch during races as a means of checking on his pace. An important element of middle-distance races is the kick, a sprint for the finish line on the last lap. Running form for middle-distance events differs from that employed in the sprints. Knee action is much less pronounced, the stride is shorter, and the forward lean is less extreme. C Long Distances Runs longer than 3,000 meters are considered distance events. The most common distance races are ones of 5,000 to 10,000 meters, and the marathon, which does not take place on a track but on paved roads over a course of 42 km, 194 m (26 mi, 385 yd). Star long-distance runners have included Ingrid Kristiansen and Grete Waitz of Norway, Emil Zátopek of the former Czechoslovakia, Frank Shorter of the United States, and Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia. Many of the best distance runners are small and light-framed. They use a running style that avoids excess motion. Knee action is slight, arm movements are reduced to a minimum, and the strides are shorter than those used in sprinting or middle-distance running. Although fitness is essential, competing in long distance events also involves careful strategizing. The top racers use a variety of techniques to outperform their opponents, from abrupt changes of pace during the race to fast finishing kicks. Although cross-country races are not generally held during track-and-field meets, many distance runners compete at cross country during the fall and winter. Crosscountry races take place over rough, rolling terrain and can be as long as 14.5 km (9 mi). Because of the varying conditions and sites, no world records are kept for cross-country racing. D Relay Races The relays are the only true team events in track and field. Relays are split into four sections called legs, with one runner covering each, then passing a baton to the next runner. The baton pass must be completed within a 20-m (65-yd) long exchange zone, or the team is disqualified. The only relays at the Olympics and world championships are the 4 × 100-meter relay (in which each athlete runs 100 meters) and the 4 × 400-meter relay (in which each athlete runs one 400-meter lap). Less common relay events include the 4 × 200-meter, 4 × 800-meter, and 4 × 1,500-meter. Sprint medleys (400 meter-200 meter-200 meter-800 meter) and distance medleys (800 meter-400 meter-1,200 meter-1,600 meter) feature four athletes running varied distances. Shuttle hurdles involve teams of four hurdlers, two at each end of the track, who race back and forth. E Hurdles Hurdling events are dashes in which competitors must clear a series of ten barriers called hurdles, which are made of metal and wood (or metal and plastic). The hurdles are placed at equal distances over the course. The distance from the starting line to the first hurdle and the distance from the last hurdle to the finish line vary depending on the event. The key to success in the hurdles is sprinting smoothly while skimming just over the hurdles. It is grounds for disqualification if an athlete goes around the hurdle instead of over it, or if an athlete purposely knocks down hurdles. Outstanding hurdlers have included Fanny Blankers-Koen of the Netherlands, Colin Jackson of the United Kingdom, and Lee Calhoun, Glenn Davis, Gail Devers, Roger Kingdom, and Edwin Moses of the United States. Men run two hurdles events on the international and collegiate level. The 110-meter high hurdles features hurdles set at 107 cm (42 in) high and 9.14 m (10 yd) apart. The 400-meter intermediate hurdles has barriers set 91 cm (36 in) high and 35 m (114 ft 10 in) apart. Women run the 100-meter high hurdles, with barriers set 84 cm (33 in) high and 8.5 m (27 ft 11 in) apart, and the 400-meter hurdles, with barriers set 76 cm (30 in) high and 35 m apart. In high school, the boys' 110-meter hurdles are set at 99 cm (39 in) and 9.14 m apart. Most states run the girls' 100-meter hurdles set 84 cm high and 8.5 m apart. The 400-meter hurdles are rarely run at the high school level. Instead, most states contest the 300-m hurdles, with the boys leaping 91-cm hurdles and the girls 76-cm ones. Both events set the hurdles 35 m apart. F Steeplechase The steeplechase covers 3,000 meters-seven and one-half laps around a 400-meter track. On each lap, runners must leap four hurdles that are 91 cm tall for men and 76 cm for women. In addition, each lap features a water jump, in which the athletes step on a barrier, then leap into a sloping, 3.7-m (12-ft) long pool of shallow water. Many successful steeplechase runners are also talented distance runners. G Race Walking Although race walking is not contested in most meets, it has been a part of track and field since the sport's earliest days. The goal is to race as fast as possible while still maintaining a walking gait. During the race the heel of the forward foot must maintain touch with the track until the toe of the trailing foot leaves the ground. The standard Olympic distances for men are 20,000 meters and 50,000 meters. Women formerly competed in the 10,000-meter event, but now their standard distance is 20,000 meters. VII JUMPING EVENTS Track and field has several jumping events. The high jump and pole vault test a competitor's ability to clear a bar at various heights. The long jump and triple jump determine how far a competitor can jump horizontally after a running start. Athletes who excel in jumping events have explosive speed over short distances, strong legs, and good coordination. A High Jump In the high jump, athletes have three chances to leap over a crossbar set between two upright poles 4 m (13 ft) apart. To make a jump, the competitors run towards the bar and then leap. After clearing the crossbar, they land on a soft cushion, called the pit. Before the competition begins, officials announce the starting height of the crossbar. An athlete who misses all three attempts is out of the competition. Those who clear the height are given another three chances at a height slightly higher, and so on. The competition continues with the crossbar being raised no more than 2 cm (.79 in) each round until every athlete misses three times in a row or withdraws from the event. The winner is the one who has jumped the highest, or, if there is a tie, the one who has missed the fewest jumps. Athletes may pass on certain preliminary heights to save their strength for later jumps. High-jump techniques have changed dramatically since the 1960s, when most competitors used the straddle. The straddler would throw one leg over the bar while facing down, the rest of the body following. In 1968 Olympic gold medalist Dick Fosbury of the United States revolutionized the event with a new technique. To do the Fosbury Flop, as it is called, the athlete leaps at the bar sideways, then pivots so that the head, facing upwards, clears the bar first. The back and then the rest of the body follow over the bar and the athlete lands shoulders first. Today, almost all jumpers use this technique. B Pole Vault Like high jumpers, pole-vaulters attempt to clear a crossbar. But the pole vault bar is much higher, and the athlete uses a flexible pole, generally from 4 to 5 m (12 to 16 ft) long, to propel his or her body into the air and over the bar. Poles are usually fiberglass, which replaced bamboo or metal in the 1960s. Grasping the pole several feet from its top, the vaulter races down a short runway, digs the tip of the pole into a box or slot in the ground called a vault box, and swings upward feetfirst toward the crossbar. As the feet near the bar, the vaulter does a virtual handstand on the pole, thrusting the body feetfirst and facedown across the bar. The vaulter then drops onto a soft pad below. Contestants have three tries at each height; the height is increased by 8 to 15 cm (3 to 6 in) at a time. Three misses at a given height disqualifies vaulters. Misses are charged when an athlete dislodges the bar or passes to the side of or underneath the bar. Bob Richards of the United States became the first pole-vaulter to win two Olympic gold medals, with victories at the Games in 1952 and 1956. Ukrainian athlete Sergei Bubka is considered the greatest pole-vaulter in history; in 1991 he became the first vaulter to top 20 ft (6.1 m). In the 1990s pole-vaulting became increasingly popular with women. Many U.S. states added it to their high school programs, and college organizations brought it into their championships. The women's pole vault earned a place as an Olympic sport for the 2000 Games. C Long Jump One of the simplest track-and-field events is the long jump--a contest that measures who can jump the farthest horizontal distance. To long jump, an athlete sprints down a runway about 45 m (148 ft) long, springs from a takeoff board, sails through the air, and lands in a sandpit. While in the air the jumper throws both feet forward of the body. The feet land first, and the jumper then pivots the body forward, so that the footprints serve as the marking distance. A foul occurs if the athlete steps beyond the take-off board during the run up to the pit. Competitors take three jumps, after which all but the best eight performers are eliminated. The best eight then take three more jumps. The athletes are rated on their longest jump. Long jumping requires strong leg and abdominal muscles, sprinting speed, and leg spring. For this reason, many top sprinters are also competitive long jumpers. One of the most outstanding track-and-field records came in the long jump during the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. American long jumper Bob Beamon jumped 8.9 m (29 ft 2.5 in), winning the gold medal and breaking the previous record by a tremendous 55 cm (21.5 in). His mark was not eclipsed until 1991, when American athlete Mike Powell jumped 8.95 m (29 ft 4.5 in). D Triple Jump Like the long jump, the triple jump involves sprinting down a runway and jumping to reach a maximum horizontal distance. The event is sometimes called the hop, skip, and jump because triple jumpers must master a three-phase sequence of a hop, a step, and a jump before landing in the sandpit. In the first phase of the sequence, the jumper sprints along a running path, then hops into the air on the takeoff foot and comes down on the same foot. The jumper then immediately springs or bounds forward and lands on the opposite foot. To complete the sequence the competitor jumps into the air once more and lands in the sandpit. Many good long jumpers are also talented triple jumpers. Sprinting speed, however, is not as important as mastering the timing of the three jumps. The triple jump was not practiced widely in the United States until the 1970s. Although it has become a common event at collegiate track and field meets, many states do not offer the event at the high school or youth levels. VIII THROWING EVENTS Events that test an athlete's abilities to put (heave), hurl, and throw certain objects are known as the throwing events. These events are the shot put, discus, hammer, and javelin, which are collectively called the weights. An athlete wins a throwing event by propelling the object the farthest. A Shot Put In the shot put event, the athlete propels a heavy metal ball with one arm only. Strength is essential, but athletes also need quickness and coordination to create momentum and maximum force during the throwing motion. To prepare for an attempt, the athlete begins at the back of a marked circle 2.135 m (7 ft) in diameter. The athlete faces backwards, holding the shot against the shoulder and under the chin. Then, in two quick steps, the athlete turns, moves to the front of the circle, and launches the shot by thrusting the arm forward--pushing, or putting, the shot, not throwing it. Olympic gold medalist Parry O'Brien of the United States popularized another technique, called the spin, in the 1950s. In the spin, the athlete rotates several times while moving forward in the ring, attempting to maximize centrifugal force on the shot. Upon reaching the front of the circle, the competitor straightens suddenly and puts the shot with an explosive uncoiling of the arm and body. In most contests each competitor takes three throws, and the eight best performers receive three more throws. Competitors are ranked according to the distance of their longest throw. If the contestant steps outside the circle, the throw does not count, and all puts must land within a fan-shaped in-bounds area. In international and collegiate track, men put a 7.26-kg (16-lb) shot. High school boys put a 5.44-kg (12-lb) shot. Women put a shot that weighs 4 kg (8 lb 13 oz) shot in high school, collegiate, and international events. B Discus The discus is a steel-rimmed hardwood or metal circular platter. To throw it, the athlete holds the discus in one hand, with the palm facing down and the arm outstretched, spins several times toward the front of a circle 2.5 m (8 ft 2.5 in) in diameter, and releases it. All legal throws must land in the prescribed fan-shaped inbounds area. Once the athletes enter the circle and begin a throw, they must not touch the ground outside the circle until the discus has landed. Each competitor takes three throws, after which the eight best throwers receive three more. The athletes are placed according to their longest throw. For men, the discus measures from 219 to 221 mm (8.63 to 8.75 in) in diameter and 44 to 46 mm (1.75 to 1.88 in) in thickness; it weighs 2 kg (4 lb 6.5 oz). For women at all levels, the dimensions are 180 to 182 mm (7 to 7.25 in) across, 37 to 39 mm (1.5 to 1.63 in) in thickness, and 1 kg (2 lb 3.25 oz) in weight. At the high school level, boys use a discus that is 209 mm (8.25 in) in diameter and weighs 1.62 kg (3 lb 9.12 oz). American Al Oerter, who is considered by many as the greatest discus thrower ever, won four straight gold medals in the event at the Olympics in 1956, 1960, 1964, and 1968. C Hammer The hammer is a metal ball attached to a wire and a handle. Athletes throw it with a spinning motion similar to that used in the discus event. The athlete grips the handle with both hands and while keeping the feet stationary whirls the ball around in a circle above the head. The hammer gains momentum as the athlete spins the body around three times; at the point of greatest speed, the athlete releases the hammer upward and outward. If it falls outside the fan-shaped in-bounds area, the throw is invalid. Most competitions allow each thrower three tries, after which the eight best performers receive three more tries. A foul occurs when any part of the competitor's body, or the hammer itself, touches the ground outside of the throwing circle during a throwing attempt. The hammer's handle is 11 cm (4.3 in) wide and is attached to a thin steel wire. At the opposite end of the wire, the heavy ball, called the head, measures 110 to 130 mm (4.3 to 5.1 in) in diameter. The total length of the handle, wire, and head must be between 117.5 and 121.5 mm (4.6 and 4.7 in) and the total minimum weight is 7.26 kg (16 lb). High school athletes do not commonly compete in the hammer event. D Javelin In the javelin event the competitors throw a steel-tipped metal spear as far as they can. To begin the throw, the contestant grasps the javelin near its center of gravity and sprints down a runway that is 4 m (13 ft 1.5 in) wide, toward a scratch line. Near the line, the athlete twists to one side and draws back the javelin. Then, to maintain running speed while leaning back for the throw, the athlete executes a hop or a fast cross-step before hurling the javelin. The throw is disallowed if the athlete steps across the line or if the javelin does not fall to earth point first. The javelin must also land within a fan-shaped throwing sector. In most meets, contestants throw three times, and the eight best throwers receive three more throws. Competitors are placed according to their best throw. The javelin's minimum length is 260 cm (8 ft 6.25 in) in men's competition and 220 cm (7 ft 2.5 in) for women. It has a minimum weight of 800 g (1.75 lb) for men and about 600 g (1.5 lb) for women. The javelin's grip measures about 15 cm (6 in) long. IX COMBINED EVENTS No other event in all of sports so thoroughly tries an athlete's combination of speed, strength, endurance, and skill as the decathlon and heptathlon. Traditionally, the winners of these combined events at the Olympics are hailed as the world's greatest all-around athletes. A Decathlon The term decathlon is Greek for 'ten tests.' Contested only by men, the decathlon consists of ten different competitions held over a two-day span. On day one, athletes compete in the 100-meter dash, long jump, shot put, high jump, and 400-meter dash. Day two features the 110-meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin, and 1,500meter running event. Athletes score points according to official scoring tables that are preset by the governing body of the sport. For example, if an athlete runs the 400-meter dash in 50 seconds, the athlete earns 815 points, and if he pole vaults 5.49 m (18 ft), he scores 1,064 points. The athlete's scores in the various events are totaled, and the competitor with the highest point total is the winner. (The highest score possible is 10,000 points.) If there is a tie, the athlete who bettered the other in the most events is the victor. Athletes who have made outstanding performances in the decathlon include Jim Thorpe, Bob Mathias, Bruce Jenner, and Dan O'Brien of the United States, and Daley Thompson of the United Kingdom. B Heptathlon The heptathlon (Greek for "seven tests") is the women's multievent competition. Like the decathlon, it happens over a two-day period. The 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, and 200-meter dash occur on day one. The second day features the long jump, javelin and 800-meter race. American Jackie Joyner-Kersee is considered the most talented heptathlon athlete ever. She won gold medals in the event at the Olympics in 1988 and 1992. X TRAINING AND PREPARATION Participation in track and field demands a higher-than-average level of physical fitness, and athletes who want to reach the Olympics and world championships must spend years in preparation. Their regimens include weightlifting, aerobic exercise, biomechanics, and closely managed eating habits. Athletes in almost every event incorporate weightlifting into their training schedule. This helps them build and strengthen muscles that they use for explosive bursts of energy. Strong muscles also help athletes avoid injuries during training and competition. Many athletes also use plyometric drills, or jump training, to develop muscular power and flexibility. Plyometrics are exercises that train the muscles to respond more quickly to flexing and contracting. Plyometric regimens include skipping, hopping, and leaping drills. All runners use some sort of aerobic training, often in the form of distance running. Training usually involves a structured schedule in which the athlete tracks daily performances and works toward distance and time goals. Training at high altitude can be advantageous, because the lesser amount of oxygen in the thinner air forces an athlete's cardiovascular system to adapt by producing more red blood cells. For a short period of time after the athlete returns to lower elevations, the blood can carry more oxygen to the muscles. Training for better technique is crucial for all athletes, but particularly so in the field events, where minor adjustments in technique can carry huge consequences in performance. Hurdlers also must hone their form constantly, and sprinters must practice the most efficient means of leaving the starting blocks. Athletes combine extensive daily practice with the study of biomechanics to raise their performance level. Biomechanics involve the use of high-speed film, which athletes and coaches study to watch the body's movements during an event. Coaches can then determine the finer points of skill needed to excel in an event, and athletes can try out new techniques. Most track athletes also consider diet very important and fill their daily meals with low-fat, nutritious foods. For distance runners, the diet often includes a large portion of carbohydrates, which is the basic fuel for endurance performance. XI HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGIATE PROGRAMS The high school and collegiate outdoor track season runs from March through June. The indoor season, which is generally considered less important, precedes it, beginning in January and ending in March. High school teams focus on dual meets (contests with other schools), invitationals, and league and area championships. For most athletes at the high school level, the premier track-and-field meet is the state championship. There is no official high school national championship, but since 1991, individual winners of events at the National Scholastic Outdoor Championships, held in June of each year, have been considered national champions. The most talented high school athletes usually go on to compete at the collegiate level. College track programs recruit these athletes by offering scholarships. Most college programs fall into one of the following groups: National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, II, or III; National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); or junior college. Competition and training are often intense, especially in the NCAA's Division I, and many future Olympians hone their skills at this level of competition. XII NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION USA Track & Field (USATF) governs the sport in the United States and has authority over youth programs, open and elite programs, and masters (40 years of age or older) programs. USATF also organizes U.S. national championships and Olympic trials. Because college and high school programs have their own governing bodies, they are not part of the USATF structure. Internationally, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has overseen the sport since 1912. The IAAF organizes track-and-field competition in the Olympics, manages the world championships, and ratifies world records. The Olympic Games, held every four years, are the most prestigious track-and-field competition. Nations can send up to three competitors in every event, provided that the athletes have met a performance standard during Olympic trials or other top-level competitions. Another premier international event is the IAAF's world championships, which occur every two years. Unlike the Olympics, the world championships offer prize money to competitors. Athletes also win bonuses if they set new world records during the competition. Nations can send up to three competitors per event if they meet specific standards. In addition, the defending champions in each event may compete over and above that national allotment. On the national and international levels, athletes generally compete outdoors from May to September. During the winter many elite athletes also attend outdoor events in the southern hemisphere countries of Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. They also compete indoors in the northern hemisphere during this time. XIII HISTORY Track and field is one of the world's oldest sporting activities. Track-and-field events are depicted in ancient Egyptian art, and records indicate that races took place in ancient Greece before 1000 BC. A Early Competition The first organized track-and-field meets, called the Olympic Games, began in 776 BC in Greece. The first Olympic champion was Coroebus, who won the first sprint competition. For many years the main Olympic competition was the pentathlon, which consisted of the discus, the javelin, foot racing, long jumping, and wrestling. Other contests, including foot races for men clad in full armor, later joined the games. The Romans conquered Greece in 146 BC and continued to hold the Olympic contests for more than 500 years. Roman emperor Theodosius I, who was a Christian, abolished the games in AD 393 because he viewed them as a pagan activity. For eight centuries thereafter, no organized track-and-field competitions occurred. B Modern Competition Track and field's modern beginnings owe much to rural athletic contests that emerged in the British Isles beginning in the 12th century. Another precursor was pedestrianism, or walking and running long distances, which became a favorite English sport in the late 1700s. For much of the next century, the running aspect of pedestrianism attracted great attention, primarily because spectators enjoyed betting on the athletes. In 1834 a group of English enthusiasts agreed on the minimum standards of performance expected in certain events, notably the 440-yd run (60 seconds), 1-mile run (5 minutes), 2-mile run (10 minutes), broad jump (20 ft), and high jump (5 ft 6 in). One of the first modern track-and-field meets occurred in 1837 at Eton College in England. In 1868 the New York Athletic Club held what some scholars call the first formalized track meet in the United States. The club went on to host the first U.S. national championship in 1876. Track and field subsequently gained a large following in the United States, and the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States (AAU) was formed in 1888. The organization sponsored meets on youth, high school, and collegiate levels. In its early years track and field was largely a male sport, but in 1895 Vassar College staged the first women's meet in Poughkeepsie, New York. That same year the New York Athletic Club and the London Athletic Club held the first international meet in New York City, and in 1896 the first modern Olympic Games took place in Athens, Greece. In 1912 the IAAF was formed in London, England, to govern international competitions. Track-and-field meets for youth and postcollegiate athletes in the United States continued under the supervision of the AAU. As track and field developed as a modern sport, a major issue for all athletes was their status as amateurs. For many years track and field was considered a purely amateur sport and athletes could not accept training money or cash prizes. If charged with professionalism, athletes could be banned from competition for life. In 1913 American Jim Thorpe was stripped of his 1912 Olympic victories in the decathlon and pentathlon and banned from further competition after it was learned he had played semiprofessional baseball. (In 1982 the International Olympic Committee [IOC] posthumously restored both Thorpe's amateur status and his two Olympic medals.) Beginning in the 1920s track and field's scope widened. The first NCAA national championships were held for men in 1921, and women's track and field became part of the Olympic Games in 1928. In 1952 the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) sent its first Olympic team ever to the Summer Games in Helsinki, Finland, where the squad captured several track-and-field medals. Over the next 30 years the U.S. and Soviet teams battled in one of the sport's longest and most competitive rivalries. Women's track struggled for widespread acceptance until the 1970s, when track and field as a whole enjoyed a boom in popularity. During that time the U.S.-based International Track Association (ITA) organized a professional track circuit. The venture, although popular among fans, went bankrupt after several years. Few athletes wanted to participate in ITA competitions because athletes were actually receiving larger illegal payments for appearing at amateur meets than legitimate professionals were making on the new circuit. Many athletes also turned away from ITA competition because it disqualified them from participating in future Olympic Games. In 1982 the NCAA held the first track-and-field national championships for women, which solidified women's participation in the sport in the United States. During the 1980s it also became legal for athletes in many countries to receive appearance payments through trust fund accounts. Some countries exercised strict controls on how their athletes used the money, while others required only notification if the money was withdrawn from an account. After several years, however, the system was abandoned in favor of direct payments to athletes. By the end of the decade, track and field at its highest levels had become a full-fledged professional sport. The IAAF Grand Prix, which in 1985 was the first meet to award official prize money, awarded more than $2.5 million in prize money at its 1998 Finals. C Recent Developments Over the years track and field has become increasingly popular outside of North America and Europe. Outstanding performances by athletes from Africa, Asia, and South America have helped boost the sport's image in many countries. In addition, the IAAF has attempted to spread training knowledge to countries that have not been traditional track-and-field powers. By the 1990s runners from Kenya, Ethiopia, and North Africa dominated the distance races. Athletes such as Ethiopia's Haile Gebrselassie, Algeria's Noureddine Morceli, Kenya's Moses Kiptanui and Daniel Komen, and Morocco's Salah Hissou broke and rebroke one another's records at an astonishing pace during the decade. During the 1980s and 1990s the sport also increased its policing of performance-enhancing drugs. Although the IAAF had instituted automatic bans for athletes who tested positive for illegal drugs in 1975, use of illegal substances by track-and-field athletes continued. As more medical evidence indicated that steroids and similar drugs pose health risks, track-and-field organizations stepped up their battle against the use of such substances. The result was extensive antidrug programs and penalties. In 1988 Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson was disqualified from competition, stripped of his Olympic gold medal in the 100-meter dash, and banned from track and field for two years after testing positive for drug use during the Summer Games. Johnson tested positive on a second occasion in 1993 and was banned from the sport for life. The events resulted in a concerted effort to eliminate performance-enhancing drugs from the sport through better detection technology combined with random testing throughout the year. Despite the shadow of the use of performance-enhancing drugs, the achievements of track-and-field athletes have ensured that the sport remains popular internationally and maintains its place as a centerpiece of the Olympic Games. And even in countries where track and field does not enjoy a great amount of support as a spectator sport, such as the United States and Canada, it is one of the most important participant sports, especially among high school students. Contributed By: Jeff Hollobaugh Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
